Frequently Asked Questions

Outsourcing your C-Suite as a concept has been around for many decades. Many are familiar with an outsourced CFO (Chief Marketing Officer), or interim CEO (covering for a CEO on leave, or when an organisation is between CEOs). Many business owners will have outside help from HR firms, Lawyers, accountants and IT consultants. In the marketing area, there are many marketing agencies and consultants who either deliver strategy (Consultants), or execute campaigns (Agency). Orange Sky Chief Marketing Officers approach this outsource C-suite position as something in between, and of course – many questions are raised. These are some of the more Frequently Asked Questions:

Frequently Asked Questions

Our ideal client is a CEO who has a vision and need someone to help bring that vision to life.

We like working with visionary CEOs, managing directors and boards. Our ideal client want to take their company to the next level, but doesn’t have the capacity. They need to understand the importance of the marketing function, and willing to invest time and effort in their company’s growth.

Our engagement is as an executive-as-a-service. As a result, our engagement models are quite flexible.

We’ve all heard of Software as a Service – you don’t have to buy it. Just use as much as you need, and it’s always updated. It’s the same with us. When we talk to a client we will figure out which is the right CMO to put on the project. We base our recommendation on the real needs of that particular client, what issues they are facing, match it to our CMO’s industry experience, and then bring that CMO into the discussion. When it comes to engagement models, we offer a lot of flexibility, to cater for a specific need of our client.

Often we appoint a part time marketing executive to help the CEO. They don’t need to be there everyday, all day. They do need to be there over the next six to 12 months period to bring that vision to life. Other times the company might have a really good home-grown Marketing Manager or Director. She may not have someone to learn from, or consult with. Our CMO can just do a couple hours of coaching a week, overseeing the marketing plan, discuss pressing issues and provide feedback.

We also do interim roles, when someone goes on vacation or is out on maternity leave. We will also run special projects where we spent a couple a days off-site to come up with a plan for the year. Then we follow up quarterly to keep them on track – and make sure the client is delivering on that plan.

We do focus on marketing. But our of definition of marketing is very broad.

Our CMOs are actually helping the CEO and the management team decide where to go next, which market segment to focus on, and how to modify the products and services to fit the consumer demands. Crafting messages targeting specific target markets, and then decide how do you get the message to them. our definition of marketing is much wider than the common definition. We don’t look at marketing as a promotional activity only.

We look at various opportunities for growth: strategic partnerships, M&As, expanding product ranges, innovation, potential disruption and disruptors, and more. Often we start with understanding the client base, and find ways to further engage them. Our CMOs will find and install technology solutions, from CRM to marketing automation,

With such a broad range of experience our Chief Marketing officers have, they can work with companies in most industries.

We deal with different types of a challenges, daily. The companies we work with have a variety of challenges, and come from every imaginable industry. We bring in people who understand not only the challenge of that client’s industry, but also understand the solution.

Our CMOs have experience with a variety of companies, in various industries. They understand professional services, consumer products, manufacturing and industrial supplies, and the non-profit sector. With their exposure to top of the range corporate technologies, processes and methodologies, you’ll rip the benefits when they transfer learning from one industry to the next.

One of the most prominent advantages when you work with an Orange Sky CMO, is that you’re not reliant only on the appointed CMO. You actually have access to the combined brains-trust of our entire group. We are able to share and transfer combined knowledge and experience, for your benefit!

When you get to the top and become the head of the marketing at big corporation, you don’t do marketing. Chief Marketing Officers manage a budget, manage a department, and go to a meeting about a meeting about a plan. Many executives get to that level, realising that the position they have gives them a lot of power. But they don’t do marketing anymore, which is what they really love.

They like getting their hands dirty, and get out of the boardroom. Working with mid-sized companies, they become a part of the management team, helping develop the plan and bring it to life. Stepping away from the large corporate position, gives them the opportunity to add real value, fairly quickly.

A CEO operating a company is looking inside the organisation; Growing a company requires a view from outside your organisation.

Many CEOs understand they need to grow, but they don’t have the internal human resources that have that expertise. It doesn’t always make sense for them to hire a full-time senior executive level marketing director. Now there’s this option of hiring an external c-suite member, with extra senior capacity, but on a part time basis.

As a part-time member the CEO staff, we work inside of the organisation, to help lead the organisation forward. The external executive then becomes a part of the executive team, a part of the company, but with continuous exposure to the world outside.

Why should I hire an outsider to my C-suite? October 26th, 2016Raz Chorev

CEOs in mid-size companies often have a vision. They know what they need to do, but they need someone help them actually do it. Not someone to sell them ad advertising campaign or a strategy deck; someone to be sitting with them on the management team, and focus on the implementation.

Working with many midsize companies, we found that there’s a big difference between growing a company and running a company. To get into any of the BRW lists, you have to have a good understanding and a vision of the marketplace. In addition, you’d need to be really good at delivering those processes, procedures, metrics and management, to make it very well run company.

To stay in that BRW list, year after year, to continue to grow – requires a different set of skills.